Arrival, Check-in & Departure | Payment & Costs | Staff | Housing | Other
Arrival, Check-in & Departure
When should we plan to arrive and depart?
You will receive a confirmation e-mail with the times for registration on the opening day, usually between 12:30 to 3p.m. All activities will end at or before noon on the final day of the student’s session.
Do parents need to be with them to check them in at check-in?
No. Many students check in on their own.
If we take our child up a day early, can we register them on that day?
No. Students will be able to get into their rooms but they must complete the regular registration process the next day. If you need to arrive one day early or depart one day late due to travel requirements, housing is available for $40 per day. Please let us know at least TWO weeks before camp begins if you need to stay with us 1-2 extra days and please add the appropriate amount to the tuition due!
What if my child must arrive after the registration time?
Signs will be posted at the dormitory directing students to late registration, usually with the dorm supervisors on each floor.
Can UTNIF IE staff pick up or take our child to the bus station or airport?
No. Due to institutional liabilities, UTNIF cannot provide transportation to and from the airport or bus station for minors. It is about a twenty minute cab ride from the airport to the Castilian Dormitory. For convenience, we suggest that you make arrangements with Supershuttle–call them at (512) 258-3826 or at www.supershuttle.com to make a reservation. However, if your child is not of age to travel alone, we can arrange for someone to meet your child at the airport and direct them to the transportation areas.
Payment & Costs
When will we get the $50 cash deposit back?
At registration, all students will submit a $50 security deposit for room key and library access. Once we have received final billing/clearance from the Castilian Dormitory for room damages, as well as clearance from University libraries on checked out materials. This is usually three to four weeks after the last day of the last session.
Can I give you a check to hold for the deposit?
No, we can only accept a cash deposit.
How much spending money do they need?
Spending money greatly depends on each students’ own preferences and behaviors. While meals are provided, students with permission may choose to go off-campus to eat. Additionally, students may take advantage of shops near campus. These habits will obviously affect the financial needs of UTNIF IE campers.
From our side, students will be responsible for copying the articles and books necessary to complete their assignments (approx. $50 to $75 per student, depending on how diligent they are in their work habits) and any and all library fines incurred. On site laundry facilities are available ($1 a load each for wash and dry).
Also, commuter students will need to bring money for meals, as they are not included in the commuter price.
Are meals covered in the cost of the tuition?
If they are staying in the dorms, yes! 19 meals a week are covered. 3 on weekdays, 2 on weekends. Commuting students will need to bring money for meals, as they are not included in the commuter price.
Housing
The Castilian Dormitory
2323 San Antonio St
Austin, TX 78705
512-478-9811
How do I get to the Castilian?
Take I35 north or south, exit and head west on MLK or Martin Luther King Blvd (toward the UT campus area). Proceed west on MLK until you pass the campus. One block past the light at Guadalupe St., there is a McDonald’s. San Antonio St. is the street immediately after the McDonald’s. Take a right. Go about four blocks. On your right will be a huge white building, the Castilian Dormitory. You can park in the garage for registration and unloading your things.
How far are students from campus?
Less than a block. Students need to cross only one street from the Castilian to be on the UT Campus.
Will my child have a roommate?
Yes. Four persons share one shower and bathroom, with 2 students per room. Private suites are not available.
Can roommates be requested?
Both individuals need to tell us that. In the vast majority of cases we are able to accommodate these requests and we will honor them to the best of our abilities. However, if students are enrolled in different programs, we cannot always honor these requests due to the logistics of the dorm floors and usage periods. Students are not allowed to change dormitory rooms once the camp begins.
Staff
Who will be watching our children?
UTNIF IE hires staff that are on-site (in shifts) 24 hours each day, and who monitor each floor from final roomcheck until morning roll call. All students are accounted for daily and in each session. Students are not allowed to miss classes except in circumstances of confirmed illness, where they may be confined to their dormitory room and supervised by dorm staff.
Do you perform criminal background checks on the staff?
Yes we do. All teaching staff and dormitory personnel hired by the UTNIF must pass a criminal background check.
More information on our staff and faculty is available here.
Other
Can my child drive while at UTNIF IE?
No, not if they are staying in the dormitory. Students are not permitted to ride in any private vehicle, unless you authorize them to do so via the methods outlined here. Be advised that students driving personal vehicles to the workshop must relinquish their keys to the dorm staff upon registering for the institute and are not permitted to drive while the institute is in session. Parking is available at the Castilian for $5 a day.
Is my child allowed to go off campus?
Only if you sign the consent allowing them to do so. Very few parents do not allow their child this privilege, and it is convenient at times for students to have the flexibility to go to nearby retail stores, restaurants, and coffee shops . Students must sign out and sign in with the dorm person on duty. We do not chaperone them while off campus, unless they are attending an officially sponsored UTNIF event.
What will they do on the weekends?
They will have class 7 days a week. There will be a few “sleep in” days.
If relatives or friends are in town, can they take them out to lunch and/or dinner?
By all means. However, you will need to send us a signed fax (512 232 1481) naming the specific person or persons that we can release them to, you need to state that the UTNIF is not responsible for ________ when with these people, and you need to state that the child is permitted to ride in an automobile with the named individuals.
The person checking your child out of the dormitory will need to check them out with the UTNIF dorm person on duty, NOT the Castilian dorm person on the 11th floor.
Can you tell us who else from our area is attending?
Sorry, in order to protect a person’s right to privacy, we are not allowed to disclose such information.